Bismillah
As-salamu alaykum wa rahmatullahi wa barakatuh
We pray this message finds you and your loved ones well, in sha Allah.
Attached we have included Sayyidi Habib Umar's end of the year - new year
message, along with the du'a of Hb. Ali al-Habshi (Allah be pleased with
him), translated by Ustadh Muhammad Ahmad, to be read at the end of the
year, in sha Allah.
May Allah bring great good to the Umma in the coming year, rectify our
affairs and may He bring relief to those who are suffering.
Please benefit and share with others, and include us in your prayers.
BarakAllahufikum
Was-salam,
--
*Wayfarers Coordinator*
بِسْمِ اللهِ الرَّحْمَنِ الرَّحِيمِ
End of Year/New Year Message
The following is summarised from a talk given by Habib `Umar bin Hafiz (Allah preserve him):#
We bid farewell to a to another year of the Hijra of the Messenger of Allah (may Allah bless him and grant him peace), a year which contains a number of days and nights which are what makes up your lifespan. If a day passes then a part of you has passed. You are but a body and spirit existent in a limited time period. When that period comes to an end you come to an end. It is only those of sound intellect who realise the true value of these days and nights that pass. They know that it is He Who made the Night and the Day to follow each other: for the one who wishes to reflect or to show gratitude.# Whatever anyone has achieved throughout the days and nights that has not increased them in reflection and gratitude has missed the purpose and fundamental wisdom for which these days and nights were created and for which mankind was created.
We witness the passing of time and the alternation of seasons and changes and events. Things which are agreeable to us; things which are unpleasant – all of which test us. We witness the passing away of those who live alongside us, some of it expected, some of it unexpected. All of this is by the decree of the All-Powerful Sovereign.
We welcome likewise a new year. Every individual must look at their level of reflection and gratitude so they may obtain their provision from these days and nights. Amongst the meanings of reflection is removing the veils from the spirit to remember the original covenant which it took with its Lord and clearing away the dust to extend its gaze to its eventual destination. As for gratitude, everything which is of any benefit to creation comes into its sphere. The Master of Creation said (may Allah bless him and grant him peace), “Should I not be a grateful slave?” He is the most grateful of creation to the Creator, and through his gratitude we show gratitude to the Creator. May Allah bind us to him in this life and the next.
It is He Who made the Night and the Day to follow each other: for the one who wishes to reflect or to show gratitude. What are the signs and the attributes of the people of reflection and gratitude? Read the eleven attributes that follow this verse, beginning with: The slaves of the Most Gracious are those who walk on the earth in humility, and when the ignorant address them, they say, "Peace!" (They are) those who spend the night in worship of their Lord prostrate and standing..#
Reflect upon these attributes and ask yourself what portion you have of them. Do not be content merely to pass over them superficially. Delve into them deeply, hold firm to them and embody their meanings. Each of these attributes has a residing place in your inner being. If each attribute finds its place you will, in your inner being, be one of the slaves of the Most Gracious and every day and night you will increase in reflection and gratitude, and He will prepare you for an indescribable reward. “I have prepared for my righteous slaves that which no eye has seen, no ear has heard, and what no man can imagine.”
The majority of the people of Islam and Iman have made no preparation for the vision of the face of the Best of Mankind, accompanying him on the day of Crowding and then in Dar al-Salam, the Abode of Peace. Does this warrant you giving anything less than your all? How much have you put towards this: of your thoughts, your actions, the attributes of your heart, of the hours of your day and night? After the death of the Messenger of Allah (may Allah bless him and grant him peace) Sayyiduna al-Siddiq would spend his nights crying out of his longing for him. Do we allow the ups and downs of this fleeting life and the desires of our enemies to tear these feelings away from us? Will you exchange the better for the worse? All you who believe, accompanying him is greater than anything we can imagine. There is no gift more exquisite that the Lord of the Throne may bless you with than his companionship and the vision of his face and addressing the possessor of that face. He is a man like no other, the Beloved of the Creator.
If these feelings were alive in the hearts of the Ummah all causes of evil inward and outward would be blocked and the Ummah would be safe from every tribulation. The level of tribulation in which we find ourselves is according to our deficiency in our love for Allah and His Chosen One (may Allah bless him and grant him peace).
At the end of this year may Allah grant us the ability to please His Beloved through seeking to improve our states and our transactions and what takes places in our houses and what is in our hearts. Nothing should be more beloved to us than Allah and nothing in creation, not even Paradise, should be more beloved to us than Muhammad. No created thing can take precedence over Muhammad, because Allah Himself gave him precedence over all of creation.
For this reason the Companion Rabi`ah ibn Ka`b could think of nothing better to ask from the Messenger of Allah than his companionship in Paradise. The response of the Messenger of Allah (may Allah bless him and grant him peace) was to order him to make abundant prostration. The closest a slave is to Allah is when he is in prostration. If you desire to be close to the one who is closest to Allah make abundant prostration. One of the meanings of this prostration is to rid our houses of anything which is contravenes his Sunnah (may Allah bless him and grant him peace). Let this Hijri year finish and with it any contravention of the Sunnah. This is prostration. You want to accompany him but you do not want to live in accordance with his teaching? Let this year finish and you are in a state of preparation to meet the best of Allah’s slaves (may Allah bless him and grant him peace).
Knocking at Allah’s door
Habib Ali bin Muhammad al-Habshi’s supplication for the beginning of the
year.
In his book, A Breath of Fragrance, al-Habib Umar bin Ahmad bin Abi Bakr bin
Sumeit refers to Habib Ali in the following terms: ‘He is an Imam about whose
sublime sainthood there is unanimity, as there was universal witness to the fact
he was the rising sun of the horizons, the vicegerent of the master of all Envoys
and the incumbent of an exalted station in the ranks of those drawn nigh to
Allah, the blessing of existence and the ka’ba of munificence’. Come and share
with us the oratory of his soul.
بسم الله الرحمن الرحيم
In the Name of Allah the All-Merciful the All-Compassionate
ألْحَمْدُ لِلّهِ رَبِّ العَالَمِيْنَ.
All praise is Allah’s, Lord of all creations.
أللَّهُمَّ
O Lord, with all beauteous names (Allahuma),
أللَّهُمَّ صّلِّ وَسَلِّمْ عَلَى سَيِّدِنَا مُحَمَّدٍ
bestow blessings and peace upon our master Muhammad,
وَسِيلَتِنَا العُظْمَى إلَيْكَ
our supreme access to You
فِي اسْتِجَابَةِ مَادَعَوْنَاهُ
in the answer to what we supplicate for,
وَتَحْقِيقِ مَارَجَوْناهُ
the achievement of what we aspire to,
وَغَفْرِ مَا جَنَيْنَاهُ
and the forgiving of such wrongdoings as we have committed,
وَعَلَى ألِهِ وَصَحْبِهِ وَمَنْ وَالاَهُ.
and upon members of his household and his companions and those who
support him.
اللَّهُمَّ إنَّهُ مَضَي عَلَيْنَا مِنْ مُدَّةِ الحَيَاةِ عَامٌ
Indeed, elapsed in our span of life is a whole year,
قَلَّدْتَنَا فِيهِ مِنْ نِعَمِكَ
You have garlanded us in it with Your bounties
مَا لاَ نَسْتَطِيع أدَآءَ الشُكْرِ عَلَيهِ
for which we are unable to offer gratitude,
وَحَفِظْتَنَا فِيْهِ
and You have protected us in it
مِنْ الأسْوَاءِ وَالمَكَارِهِ
from evils and unpleasant things
مَالاَ نَسْتَطِيعُ دَفْعَهُ.
from which we could not have protected ourselves,
وَقَدْ أؤْدَعْنَاهُ مِنَ الأعْمَال
and we have put into it works
مَا أنْتَ عَلِيمٌ بِهِ.
of which You are All-Knowing.
فَمَا وَفَّقْتَنَا فِيْهِ مِنْ حَسَنَاتٍ
Such good deeds which You have enabled us to do in it,
فَتَقَبَّلْ ذَالِكَ مِنَّا
may You please accept that from us,
واآْتُبْهُ لَنَا عِنْدَكَ مِنَ الأعْمَاَل الصَّالِحَاتِ
and may You record them in Your presence as virtuous works,
واغْفِرْ لَنَا مَادَاخَلْنَا فِيهِ مِنْ شَوَائِبِ
and may You forgive us the blemishes
الرِّيَاءِ
of ostentation,
والعُجُبِ
and self-glory,
والتَّصَنُّعِ
and self-embellishment,
وَغَيْرِ ذَلِكَ
and other things as have interfered with them,
واجْعَلْهُ وَسِيلَةً لَنَا
and may You make them a means through which
إلَى رِضَاكَ عَنَّا وَزُلْفَى لَدَيْكَ.
we are led to Your good pleasure and drawn near to You,
وَمَا قَارَفْنَا فِيْهِ مِنْ سَيِّئاتٍ وَخَطِيََّاتٍ. وَاَفْعَالٍ غَيْرِ مَرْضِيَّاتٍ. وَنِيَّاتٍ غَيْرِ صَالِحَاتٍ.
and such evil deeds and errors as we have committed. And actions unpleasing
in Your sight. And intentions which are unrighteous
بِجَوَارِحَنَا وَقُلُوبِنَا
[such of these that we may have committed] with our limbs and our hearts
فَنَسْأَلُكَ اللَّهُمّ
we ask You, Allahuma,
بِحَقٍّ ذَاتِكَ
by virtue of Your essence
وَأسْمَائِكَ
and Your names
وَصِفَاتِكَ
and Your attributes,
وَبِحقِّ القُرآنِ العَظِيْمِ
and by virtue of the sublime Quran
وَآُتُبِكَ الْمُنْزَلَةِ،
and Your revealed books,
وَبِحَقِّ سَيِّدِنَا مُحَمَّدٍ صَلّى اللهُ عَلَيْهِ وَآلِهِ وَسَلَّمَ
and by virtue of our master Muhammad, Allah bless him and bestow peace
upon him as well as members of his household,
وَبِحَقِّ مَنْ لَهُ وَجَاهَةُ عِنْدَكَ
and by virtue of whosoever has rank before You
مِنْ جَمِيْعِ خَلْقِكَ
amongst all Your created beings,
أنْ تَغْفِرَ الذُنُوبَ آُلَّهَا
that You will forgive all those wrongdoings
وَتَسْتُرَ العُيُوبَ آُلَّهَا،
and cover all those defects,
وَتَتَفَضَّلَ عَلَيْنَا
and that You will favour us
مِنْ وَاسِعِ جُوْدِكَ العَظِيِمْ
from Your ample, magnificent, generosity
بِجَمِيْعِ مَا نُؤَمِّلُ،
with all that we aspire to,
وَأنْ تُبَدِّلَ سَيِّئَاتِنَا حَسَنَاتٍ،
and that You will exchange our evils actions for good ones,
وَتُبَلِّغَنَا مِنْ رِضَاكَ عَنَّا
and that You will enable us to attain Your good pleasure
أقْصَى الأُمْنِيَّاتِ
at the highest level of our aspirations
وَنِهَايَةَ المُرَادَاتِ
and the uppermost limit of our wishes.
وَنَحْنُ آَمَا تَعْلَمُنَا
And we, as You know us,
نَوَاصِيْنَا بِيَدِكَ
have our forelocks in Your hands
وَأمْرُنَا فِي جَمِيْعِ حَالَاتِنَا إلَيْكَ،
and our entire affair, in all our states, come back to You,
وَمَا قَامَ مَعَنَا مِنْ ظَنٍّ جَمِيْلٍ بِكَ أنْتَ تَعْلَمُهُ،
and whatever good opinion we cherish regarding You, You are well aware of
it,
وَاضْطِرَارُنَا إلَيْكَ
and our absolute dependence upon You,
وَافْتِقَارُنَا لَكَ
and extreme need of You,
لاَ يَخْفَى عَلَيْكَ،
are not concealed from You,
وَهَذِهِ أَآُفُّنَا
and here are our hands
مَبْسُوْطَةٌ لَدَيْكَ
stretched out towards You
وَقُلُوبُنَا مُتَوَجِّهَةٌ إلَيْكَ،
and our hearts are focused upon You,
فَلا تُخَيِّبْنَا
do not therefore, turn us away empty handed,
يَا أمَلَ المُؤَمِّلِيْنَ
O, the Hope of all aspirers!
وَيَا مَلاذَ الَّلائِذِيْنَ،
And the Refuge of all refuge seekers!
اِرْحَمْ مَنْ نَادَاكَ
Show mercy unto he who calls You
وَهُوَ يَعْتَقِدُ أنَّكَ رَبَّهُ،
when he believes that You are his Lord
وَقَصَدكَ وَأنْتَ حَسْبُهُ،
and comes exclusively to You, when indeed, You are his sufficiency,
وَقَدْ اسْتَقْبَلَنَا مِنْ بَعْدِ عَاِمَنا المَاضِي
After the outgoing year
عَامٌ جَدِيدٌ
a new year has come upon us
مَا نَدْرِي
while we do not know
مَاذَا سَبَقَ فِي عِلْمِكَ فِيْنَا،
what has been pre-ordained in Your knowledge regarding us.
وَرَجَاؤُنَا
And our hope is
أنْ تَفْتَحَ لَنَا فِي هَذَا العَامِ الجَدِيْدِ
that You will open for us, in this new year,
بَابَ التَّوْبَةِ الصَّادِقَةِ الخَالِصَةِ
a door of sincere, genuine, repentance
الَّتِي لَا يَعْقُبُهَا نَكْثٌ،
from which we shall not renege,
وَأنْ تَرْزُقَنَا فِيْهِ
and that You will grace us in it
مِنَ التَّوْفِيقِ
with the ability
لِلأعْمَالِ الصَّالِحَةِ
for virtuous works,
المَقْبُوْلَةِ عِنْدَكَ
acceptable to You,
مَا يُوجِبُ لَنَا رِضَاكَ عَنَّا،
that will in turn grace us with Your good pleasure towards us,
وَأنْ تَعْمُر جَوَارِحَنَا
and that You will employ our limbs
بِطَاعَتِكَ المَرْضِيَّةِ عِنْدَكَ،
in obedience that is well-pleasing in Your sight,
وَقُلُوبْنَا بِحُبِّكَ
and our hearts with love for You,
وَحُبِّ مَنْ تُحِبُّهُ
and love for whomsoever You love,
وَحُبِّ مَا تُحِبُّهُ،
and love for whatsoever You love,
وَتُوَسِّعَ قُلُوبَنَا
and that You will expand our hearts
وَتُؤَهِّلْهَا
and grant them the capacity
لِمَعْرِفَِتكَ الخَاصَّةِ
for Your special knowledge,
الَّتِي أآْرَمْتَ بِهَا عِبَادَكَ العَارِفِيْنَ
with which You have ennobled such of Your servants that are possessed of
knowledge about You
وَأوْلِيَائَكَ الصَّالِحِيْنَ،
and virtuous saints,
وَتَرْزُقَنَا مَِن التَّقْوَى
and that You will sustain us with taqwa
الَّتِي أآْرَمْتَ بِهَا عِبَادَكَ المُتَّقِيْنَ
with which You have ennobled servants of Yours who are endowed with
taqwa
حَقِيْقَتَهَا
[that You will sustain us] with its essence,
وَثَمَرَتَهَا
its fruit,
وَأُصُولَهَا
its main roots
وَفُرُوعَهَا،
and its branches
وَتُنْزِلَنَا مِنَ الإسْتِقَامَةِ أعْلَى مَنَازِلِهَا،
and may You lodge us in the highest stations of rectitude,
وَمِنَ اليَقِينِ أرْفَعَ مَرَاتِبِهِ،
and raise us to certainty at the highest levels of certainty,
وَتَسْلُكَ بِنَا سَبِيلَ الإتِّبَاعِ
and that You may grant us entry to the path of following,
فِي الأقْوَالِ
in words,
وَالأفْعَالِ
deeds,
وَالنِّيَّاتِ
intentions,
وَالأعْمَالِ
and works,
لِحَبِيبِكَ
Your beloved,
أشْرَفَ خَلْقِكَ عَلَيْكَ
the most honoured of created beings in your presence,
سَيِّدِنَا مُحَمَّد صَلَّى اللهُ عَلَيْهِ وَآلِهِ وَسَلَّمَ،
namely our master Muhammad, may Allah bless him and bestow peace upon
him, as well as his household,
وَتُوَفِّرَ حَظَّنَا مِنْ حُبِّ
and that You may make ample our share of love
هَذَا الحَبِيْبِ
for this beloved
وَاتَّبَاعِهِ
and of following him
فِي آُلِّ أحْوَالِنَا،
in all our states
وَتَجْعَلَنَا يَا رَبَّنَا
and that You make us, O our Lord,
مِنْ أسْعَدِ النَّاسِ بِهِ
among the happiest of people by virtue of him,
وَأقْرَبِ النَّاسِ إلَيْهِ
and those closest to him,
وَمِنْ أعْظَمِ الخَلْقِ مَوَدَّةٌ لَهُ،
and among those who cherish the greatest lasting love for him,
وَشَرِّفْنَا بِرُؤْيَةِ وَجْهِهِ الشَّرِيْفِ صَلَّى اللهُ عَلَيْهِ وَآلِهِ وَسَلَّمَ
and may You honour us with the vision of his honoured face, Allah bless him
and bestow peace upon him and his household
وَهُوَ رَاضٍ عَنَّا
whilst he is well pleased with us,
فِي المَنَامِ
in sleep
وَاليَقَظَةِ
and our wakeful moments,
وَفِي الدُّنْيَا
in this world,
وَالبَرْزَخِ
the world in between
وَ وَفِي الآخِرَةِ،
and the hereafter,
وَأآْرِمْنَا يَا رَبَّنَا
and may You honour us, O our Lord,
بِالْبَرَآَةِ التَّامَّةِ الوَاسِعَةِ فِي أعْمَالِنَا،
with complete and copious blessing in our works,
وَفِي نِيَّاتِنَا
our intentions,
وَفِي أرْزَاقِنَا
and our sustenance
وَفِي حَرَآَاتِنَا
and in our movements
وَ سَكَنَاتِنَا،
and stillness,
وَاجْعَلِ الأعْوَامَ المُسْتَقْبَلَةِ مِنْ أعْمَارِنَا
and may You make the coming years of our lives
دَائِرَةً عَلَيْنَا بِالثَّبَاتِ عَلى دِينِكَ،
rotate around firmness in our religion
وَالإقْبَالِ عَلَى خِدْمَتِكَ،
and dedication to Your service,
وَاحْفَظْنَا فِي جَمِيْعِ ذَلِكَ مِنْ شَرِّ الشَّيْطَانِ
and may You protect us in all this from the evil of Satan,
وّعَمَلِهِ
and his works,
وَشَرِّ النَّفْسِ الأمَّارَةِ بِالسَّوْءِ وَعَمَلِهَا،
and from the evil of the evil-commanding soul, and its work,
وَشَرِّ فِتْنَةِ الدُنْيَا،
and from the evil of worldly temptation,
وَاحْفَظْنَا مِنَ الوُقُوعِ مَعَ زَخَارِفِهَا
and may You protect us from plunging into its gewgaws,
وَزِيْنَتَهَا
and its decorations,
وَمِمَّا اَخْتَبَرْتَنَا بِهِ فِيْهَا مِنْ مَالٍ وَعِيَالٍ
and from such tests as derive from it in the area of wealth and dependents
وَغَيْرِ ذَلِكَ،
and things other than these,
وَمِنْ مُطَاوَعَةِ الهَوَى المُرْدِيِّ،
and from yielding to ruinous passions,
وَاحْفَظْنَا مِنْ تَغْلِيْبِ جَانِبِ الحُظُوْظِ العَاجِلَةِ،
and may You protect us from being overwhelmed in the domain of ephemeral
desires,
وَمِنْ قُرَنَاءِ السُوْءِ وَمُخَالَطَتَهُمْ ،
and from evil companions and their companionship,
وَاجْعَلْ أوْقَاتَ أعْمَارِنَا المُتَجَدِدَّة
and may You make our renewed spans of life
مَصْرُوْفَةً آُلَّهَا فِيْمَا يُرْضِيْكَ عَنَّا،
all employed in what is well pleasing to You,
وَمَا تَفَضَّلْتَ بِهِ عَلَيْنَا مِنْ نِعَمٍ
and such bounties as You have generously bestowed upon us,
وَفِّقْنَا فِيْهِ لِلشُّكْرِ عَلَى ذَلِكَ،
may You enable us to offer gratitude for that,
وَاجْعَلْنَا يَا رَبَّنَا
and may You make us, O our Lord,
مِنَ المُسْتَمْسِكِيْنَ بِالعُرْوَةِ الوُثْقَى
among those who hold firm to the firm handhold
مِنَ الصِّدْقِ مَعَكَ فِي جَمِيعِ تَوَجُّهَاتِنَا.
of sincerity towards You, in all our pursuits,
وَعُمَّ بِهَذِهِ الدَّعَوَاتِ
and may You embrace in all these supplications
أوْلادَنَا
our children
وَوَالِدِينَا
and our parents,
وَأصْحَابَنَا
and our friends
وَإخْوَانَنَا فِي الدِّيْنِ،
and our brethren in religion,
وَهَبْ لَنَا قُوَّةً
and endow us with an immense strength
نَقْوَى بِهَا عَلى طَاعَتِكَ
which will [further] strengthen us in obedience to You,
وَأدَاءِ حَقِّكَ عَلَى الوَجْهِ الَّذِي تُحِبُّهُ وَتَرْضَاهُ،
and in the discharge of Your obligation upon us, in the manner that You like,
and with which You are well pleased,
وََاجْعَلْ لَنَا حَظًّا وَافِراً مِنَ التَّشْمِيرِ فِي خِدْمَتِكَ
and may You grant us a plentiful share with which to strive vigorously in Your
service,
وَمُوَاصَلَةِ الأعْمَالِ المُوْجِبَةِ لِرِضَاكَ،
and in the constancy of such works as will earn Your good pleasure,
وَافْتَحْ لَنَا فَتْحاً مُبِيناً
and may You open for us, a manifest opening,
فِي تَدَبُّرِ القُرْآنِ العَظِيْمِ
in the reflection of the magnificent Quran,
وَالوُقُوفِ عَلَى أسْرَارِهِ
and in the access to its secrets,
وَحُسْنِ الأدَبِ عِنْدَ تِلاَوَةِ آيَاتِهِ
and in the excellent manners at the time of reciting its verses,
وَسَمَاعِهَا،
and when listening to them,
وَارْزُقْنَا يَا رَبَّنَا
and may You grant us, O our Lord,
حِفْظَ ألْفَاظِهِ
the memorisation of its words
وَحِفْظَ حَقِّهِ
and the fulfilling of its obligations,
وَإجَابَةِ دَاعِيهِ
and the response to its call,
وَالمُبَادَرَةَ إلَى اِمْتِثَالِ أمْرِه
and the hastening to abide by its commands
وَاجْتِنَابِ نَهْيِهِ،
and the avoidance of its prohibitions,
وَاجْعَلْنَا مِنْ أهْلِ الوَفَاءِ بِحَقِّهِ
and may You make us amongst a people who are loyally wedded to its rights,
وَاجْعَلْهُ لَنَا عِنْدَكَ شَاهِداً بِالصِّدْقِ فِي العَمَلِ بِمَا دَعَانَا إلَيْهِ يَا أرْحَمَ الرَّاحمِيْنَ.
and may You appoint it for us, in Your presence, a witness of sincerity through
fulfilling what it calls us to, O Most Merciful of the Merciful, [since every
merciful one receives the gift of mercy from You],
وَصَلَّى اللهُ عَلَى سَيِّدِنَا مُحَمَّدٍ وَآلِهِ وَصَحْبِهِ أجْمَعِينَ وَالحَمْدُلِلّهِ رَبِّ العَالَمِينَ.
and may Allah bestow blessings on our master Muhammad and his household,
and upon his companions in their entirety, and the praise is Allah’s, Lord of all
universes.
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Credits:
Those deserving our warm gratitude for their help in this work are quite a few. They include Sayyidina al-Habib
Abd al-Qadir bin A’bd ar-Rahman bin U’mar al-Junayd for his guidance, Bibi Zainab Ali Foum, Shaikh Nassor
bin Maalim Abdalla bin Maalim Mohammed Abu Bakr, Mohammed Ahmed bin Himid Mbaye, Rashid A. Saleh,
Maalim Ibrahim Ahmad Musa, Ali & Arif S. Dahoma, Fatima Issa Kara, Ahmad Ibrahim Khalid, A.R., Nuru
Adam, Shaikh Abdalla Miraja Othman, Alawi bin Shams az-Zaman al-Haddad – they all look forward to duas for
their various connections to this modest contribution.
